Let's Play!
by Star of Heaven
Summary: Ken is playing a small game of soccer, and soon Omi decides to join him. But what are Omi's reasons for wanting to play with Ken? [Ken x Omi hints]


_Let's Play!_  
  
Disclaimer: If I owned Weiß Kreuz, do you think I would have a disclaimer? Anyway, this fic was written for my sister Kayin-no-Kaze, just 'cause she has a soft spot for the Ken/Omi pairing.

* * *

Hidaka Ken bounced a soccer ball off of his head and toward a large tree. The soccer ball did a rebound from the tree and shot right into Ken's hands.  
  
The morning light of the sun shone down upon Ken as he unscrewed the top of a water bottle and started chugging. When he had woken up, he had felt this strange desire to play soccer. So he had decided to go over to the large clearing near the flower shop to play around a little. He had left a note for the other three florists just in case any of them wondered where he had gone.  
  
Ken wiped the sweat off of his forehead with his arm. The weather was mildly hot, but he didn't mind working up a sweat. To him, that just meant he was having fun. Although, this would probably have been more fun if he had somebody to play with, he thought.  
  
After he had drunk his fill of water, he put the bottle down near the tree. He then picked up the soccer ball and began bouncing it off his knee. He wanted to see how long he could do this without messing up.  
  
"Hey, Ken-kun!" called out a childish voice. It surprised Ken so much that he accidentally dropped the soccer ball. He turned around to see who was behind him.  
  
Tsukiyono Omi chuckled quietly as he stepped up next to Ken. "Did I surprise you?" he asked the older brunette.  
  
"Omi, you shouldn't surprise people like that," Ken ordered half-heartedly. "I was actually doing pretty well."  
  
Another laugh escaped from Omi. "Oh, that's too bad," he said jokingly. "Can I play? That is, if you don't mind."  
  
A broad grin came upon Ken's face. "Of course I don't mind!" he answered happily. "Soccer's more fun if you play it with someone." He picked up the soccer ball and went over to the other side of the clearing. "Ready?"  
  
"Ready!" Omi yelled, nodding his head.  
  
"Okay!" Ken threw the soccer ball up and hit it off his head toward Omi's direction.  
  
The young blond planted his feet firmly and held out his hands to catch the ball. However, it flew between his hands and nailed him right in his stomach. The air was knocked out of him and he fell over backwards.  
  
"Are you all right?" Ken asked worriedly, quickly rushing over to Omi. "You're not hurt, are you?"  
  
"You kidding?" Omi replied, wheezing a little. "Of course I'm all right! That was nothing!"  
  
Ken couldn't resist laughing. "That's great," he said. "Now I can get rough without worrying about hurting you too much." He walked back to where he had first hit the ball to Omi. "Now, kick the ball to me, Omi."  
  
"Sure, Ken-kun!" Omi placed the soccer ball in front of his foot. He then took a few steps backwards before giving the ball a good, hard kick.  
  
Ken smirked and stopped the ball with his chest. He then bounced it off his knee and sent it flying over Omi's head. The younger blond was forced to chase after the soccer ball to retrieve it. Ken made no effort to hold back his laughter.  
  
"That wasn't funny!" Omi said after he had picked up the soccer ball. His face was a very bright red. "You know I'm not that tall!"  
  
"C'mon, that was funny and you know it," Ken countered, snickering. "Hey, you want some water?" he asked, picking up the water bottle that he had set next to the tree.  
  
"Yeah, sure," Omi accepted, walking over to Ken. "That'll be nice." He took the water bottle from the older brunette. He drank a little before screwing the top back on. "Thanks, Ken-kun."  
  
A smile came upon Ken's lips as Omi handed the water bottle back to him. "So, why did you want to play with me?" he wondered of the younger blond.  
  
Omi suddenly grew tense. "Oh, no reason," he answered, his voice highly nervous. "I was just bored, that's all."  
  
"Really," Ken replied, raising a suspicious eyebrow. "But I'm not complaining. I enjoy having someone to play with." He picked up the soccer ball and lightly kicked it off his knee into Omi's hands. "C'mon, let's get back to playing."  
  
"Thanks, Ken-kun," Omi whispered so quietly that Ken didn't hear him.  
  
"Okay, give the ball a good kick!" Ken requested as he backed away from Omi.  
  
"I will!" The blue-eyed blond put the soccer ball down on the ground and gave it as good as a kick as he had promised. It shot toward Ken, and he smacked it back with a wide kick. Omi ran a little to the right to stop the ball and then he sent it flying to the athletic brunette.  
  
The two florists continued to kick the soccer ball back and forth to each other. Occasionally the ball would fly right over one of their heads and then they would have to retrieve it from a bush or something. They were having so much fun that they had completely lost track of time.  
  
Finally they decided to take a short break to catch their breath. Ken opened a new water bottle (he was very glad that he had brought more than one) and split it with Omi.  
  
"Having fun?" Ken asked as Omi finished his water.  
  
Omi nodded happily. "Yeah, I am," he responded. He suddenly seemed depressed as he sat down on the warm grass. "Hey, do you want to know the real reason why I wanted to play with you?"  
  
Ken was puzzled by the question. "Sure," he replied, sitting down next to Omi.  
  
The young blond inhaled a deep breath. "Ken-kun, I'm so stressed out," he began. "Everyone expects me to do well in school. I have to work so hard to live up to their expectations. At first, it was challenging, but now it's just plain frustrating. It's difficult just to keep up with my schoolwork. I mean, with the Kitty and the House and Weiß and all that."  
  
Ken had no idea what to say. He would never have guessed that Omi had been suffering like he was. "Oh Omi, I didn't know," he said gently. "You always seemed so happy."  
  
"Well, what do you expect?" Omi snapped. "With my night job, there's no way I can truly be happy. It's just an act to fool everybody."  
  
A grumble escaped from Ken. "You don't have to fool us," he pointed out. "We share the same nightlife, so we do know how you feel. You're not the only one suffering, and we don't want you to suffer alone."  
  
Omi sighed heavily. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "It's just so stressful. I didn't want to burden you guys. We all have problems of our own."  
  
Ken loosely wrapped his arm around Omi's shoulders. "Omi, we're all in Weiß together," the brown-haired soccer player said calmly. "And even though it may not always seem this way, we are friends."  
  
A small smile came across Omi's lips. "Ken-kun, I feel that you're the closest person to me," he admitted, his voice soft. "You seem to understand me the best."  
  
"Of course I do," Ken agreed, grinning widely. "Most times, you do make an effort to reach out, kinda like me. I only wish that you were doing that right now."  
  
Omi rested his head on Ken's firm shoulder. "I should do that, shouldn't I?" he figured, chuckling silently. "It's so hard to reach out to Aya-kun and Yoji-kun, but it's different with you. Aya-kun puts up a cold front, and Yoji-kun puts up a happy front. You're more honest than they are. At least to me, anyway."  
  
"Because you're the same," Ken added as he placed his chin on Omi's dirty-blond hair. "You act happy, but you do let some of your true self shine through."  
  
The younger blond wrapped his arms around the older brunette's back. "You're so kind, Ken-kun," Omi said, his voice affectionate.  
  
Ken returned Omi's embrace. "So are you, Omi," he replied, his voice equally affectionate.  
  
For a while, the two florists held each other comfortingly in their arms. It was a simple pleasure, but they didn't mind. It did wonders for Omi's stress, and Ken actually liked this feeling. Soon they stood up and then released the other.  
  
"Think we should go back to the shop?" Ken wondered, smiling kindly.  
  
"Yeah, we should," Omi agreed, returning Ken's smile with a gentle smile of his own.  
  
So with one arm wrapped around the back of the other's waist, they headed back to the flower shop. The soccer game was forgotten, but more importantly they had learned a few things about each other that they hadn't known before.  
  
-End- 


End file.
